The proletatrianization of the middle class has been a Marxist goal from the beginning. To this end, Obamacare is making great strides. I will get my new Obamacare enrollment summary out soon, but apparently 79% of the people buying private policies are subsidized. Add to this all the people who are being added to Medicare, and my guess is that over 90% of enrollments are into plans fully or partially funded by taxpayers. Since almost by definition, these are all people who were paying their own way before, these are all people converted from individual responsibility to wards of the state.

9 Comments

curmudgeon:

The impact will be small for the rest of BHO's presidency, but by 2018-2020 the budget will really be puffed up by the medicaid expansion, ACA subsidies and the general boomer retirement expansion of SS and medicare. Certainly by 2020 TSWHTF. In the near term I wonder how the executive branch plans to fund expenditures when (if?) the FR ramps down QE to under $100B/yr.

Matthew Slyfield:

MingoV:

My 59-year-old wife with preexisting illnesses finally can get catastrophic health insurance. At $500 per month. But, after the subsidy, we pay only $28 a month. Ain't that great? However, we'd dump her policy and my Soc. Sec. disability in a heartbeat if all the entitlement programs were axed. We would dump our benefits so our kids won't be financially destroyed by the Ponzi schemes called entitlements.

c_andrew:

The proletatrianization of the middle class has been a Marxist goal from the beginning. Yup, feature, not a bug. Can't have those independent types running about. They might actually object. If you can't be coopted like the rich or threatened like the poor, then you must be forced into one of those categories, preferably the second. And if we can't intimidate you into becoming a ward of the state, we'll by God force you into becoming a ward of the state.

John Moore:

CapitalistRoader:

Since almost by definition, these are all people who were paying their own way before, these are all people converted from individual responsibility to wards of the state.

Yep, me too. Was paying $308/month for a $5750-deductible plan all by myself. Now paying $40/month for a $2500-deductible Obamacare plan. But the new plan really costs $447/month so US taxpayers picking up $407 of the monthly cost. $407 divided by 30 days = $13.56: my free lunch.

I don't expect it to last. Too expensive. In a few years rates will rise and/or subsidies will drop and I'll probably be paying >$400/month for the same plan. And I'll still be a ward of the state.